State urges city to avoid school at Fernald

With Waltham officials eyeing the former Fernald Developmental Center site for a new high school, a new letter from state officials is urging the city to look elsewhere.

The letter, sent from the Massachusetts Historical Commission, states that constructing the school on the Fernald, which would require the demolition of six buildings – Tarbell Hall, West Building, Belmont House, Seguin Hall, MacDougall Hall, and Dolan Hall – would have an "adverse effect" on the preservation of the site's history, and would trigger a consultation process with the commission.

The buildings are on the west campus of the old Fernald Center. One of the structures, the West Building, is the oldest school building on the 200-acre site, but is in severe disrepair. The rest of the buildings were the center of the custodial campus, and represent some of the most historically significant buildings on the site.

The Fernald, which dates back to the last 1800s and has a partially dark past, including medical experiments on children, is listed in the state and national registers of historic places.

History at stake

The consultation process for constructing a school on the site would be intended to “seek ways to avoid, minimize, or mitigate the adverse effect of the proposed demolitions,” according to the letter from the state.

The letter concludes by stating, “The MHC encourages the proponent to explore alternatives for a new Waltham High School that would not impact historic resources.”

Conversely, the letter also states that building at the current location of the high school, which is the other option school officials are debating, would require no review from the historical commission because it is not included in the commission’s inventory of state historic and archaeological assets, nor in the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

Members of a subcommittee of the School Building Committee met on Monday, Oct. 24, and discussed appropriate next steps in response to the letter. A meeting will likely be scheduled for next week involving the subcommittee and the city’s historical commission to go over options moving forward and how best to respond to the state.

Alex Green, a member of the Waltham Historical Commission, said building on the Fernald could result in a lengthy process, but could also set up a healthy public process.

“There’s a way to see this letter as something negative, but … I think it also could create a really positive process for historic preservation at the site,” he said.

He added that using the land for an educational purpose would be fitting.

“This site has a very mixed, sometimes awful, history of dealing with children. It would be great to see a plan that could get that right,” he said. “I think the question for us is: ‘Is this that plan right now?’”

Many ideas for Fernald, but no agreement

The future of the Fernald site has been a hot topic for years, with residents and city officials suggesting a number of uses.

Just this week, Waltham City Councilor George Darcy introduced eight different resolutions relating to possible uses at the Fernald. They include farming, a museum dedicated to the history of the Fernald, a playground for the developmentally disabled, vocational training, community center, art gallery, recreational lawn for the Lawrence School, and an extension of the Western Greenway.

Schools Superintendent Drew Echelson agreed with Green that an educational building on the Fernald would be a fitting use for the site, considering its history. Additionally, he said building a school there would prevent developers from taking over the land.

“If I’m being honest, I don’t think there should be development there. I think it should be land for the citizens of Waltham, and one use of those uses would be for an educational purpose,” he said.

He said his office is in the process of scheduling a couple of consultations with the state.

“I know that at the end of the day, the School Building Committee is going to choose the option that is in the best educational interest of Waltham students,” he said.

Rocky road ahead?

Getting to that decision quickly, however, could prove difficult.

In a press release published on Monday, Oct. 24, Echelson said school officials are hoping to pick one option for the site of the new high school by Monday, Nov. 14.

“In the coming weeks, it is my hope and expectation that the School Building Committee will be prepared to make a single recommendation for a new or renovated school,” said Echelson, in the emailed press release. “As we move into the final stages of this process, I want to be sure that all citizens have been provided an opportunity to read the education plan for a new or renovated high school.”

Residents will also have an opportunity to voice their opinion on the new school at a citywide PTO meeting at the high school on Tuesday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m., a Building Committee meeting at the high school on Monday, Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m., and at a “Meet the Ward Councilors” event at the high school on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m.

“We’re going to move this as quickly as we can, but we’re not going to compromise the process simply for speed,” said Echelson.

If the building committee votes on a preferred option by Nov. 14, there will be school committee and building committee meetings to discuss the plan on Wednesday, Nov. 16 and 30, Tuesday, Dec. 6, and Wednesday, Dec. 7, all at the high school. The Nov. 30 and Dec. 6 meetings will both be public hearings.